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Miley Cyrus does little to distinguish herself on 'Bangerz'

By Gary Graff, The Oakland Press

Posted:
10/07/2013 05:46:20 AM MDT

Updated:
10/07/2013 08:18:48 AM MDT

At the iHeartRadio Music Festival in Las Vegas, the young actress and singer wore one of the provocatively skimpy ensembles she has become known for lately, including high-waisted bottoms and a corset-style top in immaculate white. (Hahn Lionel/ABACA)

POP
Miley Cyrus
“Bangerz”
RCA2 1/2 stars

“I'm a female rebel ... can't you tell,” Miley Cyrus informs us on her fourth album, and her first since the end of her Disney Channel series, “Hannah Montana.” Of course, that's hardly news to anyone who's been paying attention. With her twerking exploits at MTV's Video Music Awards and the provocative “Wrecking Ball” video, Cyrus is determinedly and defiantly leaving any vestiges of her clean-cut Disney image in the rearview mirror in favor of a libidinous, hip-hopping pop tart who can hang with the Rihannas, the P!nks, the Katys, the Gagas and the Britneys -- who guests on the gimmick laden “SMS (Bangerz)” here.

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Cyrus certainly sounds comfortable in her new mode, swaggering through “4x4” with rapper Nelly, slinking around “Love Money Party” with Detroit's Big Sean, visiting the Dirty South on “Do My Thang,” having some dumb fun on “We Can't Stop” and dipping into the blues on “FU” with French Montana, slinging plenty of urban slang along the way and name-checking primary producer Mike WiLL at nearly every opportunity. But at her heart here, Cyrus emerges as diva with a (mostly) broken heart, torching her occasionally Auto-Tuned way through gentler tracks such as “Adore You,” the “Stand By Me”-sampling “My Darlin'” with Future, “Maybe You're Right,” “Someone Else” and, of course, the string-laden “Wrecking Ball,” whose merits are largely obscured by the furor over the nude video. Though it's more assured than skeptics or Cyrus haters might be willing to acknowledge, there's little here to distinguish her from her peers. Interestingly the two Pharrell Williams-produced bonus tracks on the Deluxe Edition -- the smooth soul-pop of “Rooting For My Baby” and the fierce 'n' funky “On My Own” -- have more moxy than anything on the regular version of “Bangerz,” which, if nothing else, is a good lure for the more extensive set.

POP
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
“The Speed of Things” (Warner Bros.)3 stars

Since its inception three years ago the Detroit duo of Joshua Epstein and Daniel Zott has been an eyebrow-raiser, not just because of its name but also its utterly unique approach to pop music -- an odd union of the Beach Boys and Flaming Lips with plenty of other references slipping in and out of its songs. Following this year's “Patterns” EP, “The Speed of Things” is another winning trip through DEJJ's sonic playground, with notably more focused and developed songwriting bolstering the polyrhythmic “Run,” the buoyant “Hiding,” the stuttering “Mesopotamia” and the lush disco of the single “If You Didn't See Me (Then You Weren't On the Dancefloor).” And “Beautiful Dreams'” shimmering synthesizers and airy harmonies offer sumptuous ear candy that really comes to life in headphones.

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